Click
by Tasogare-Taichou
Summary: Just a short oneshot done for a writing challange. The theme was new shoes. Please read and review, it's very cute. Pairings: IchiRuki


**Click, click, click.**

Orange brows drew together even further then their usual characteristic scowl as the rhythmic sound pounded into his ears, embedding itself in the grey matter of his brain.

Click, click, click… 

"God Rukia, would you cut that out! It's fuckin irritating!"

Up ahead of him, the shorter figure paused, the even clacking noise stopping as she did so. Turning back to glance over her shoulder at him, the raven-haired shinigami frowned and brushed an errant strand of hair from blueviolet eyes. NOW what was he complaining about? She answered his scowl with a frown of her own, those same blueviolet eyes rolling slightly in aggravation. Could he _be_ any more vague?

"Cut _what_ out? It's a bit hard to disregard what you say if I don't know what it is that you're whining about, you know."

Heh, very funny. But, that was Rukia. Always thinking she was _sooo_ amusing and _sooo_ clever. Well…actually she _was_ clever. And she _did_ have a tendancy to be amusing, even if his enjoyment of said amusing things usually resulted in bruises and/or blows to the head. Which…he didn't entirely mind, all protests to the contrary. Not that he'd ever actually admit that. Afterall, what would the petite shinigami think if she knew that he actually almost…enjoyed their constant verbal sparring matches? Not in some sort of weird fetishy way, he commented to himself, but in the sense that having someone around who would match him word for word and stand up to him the way that she did could actually be considered…nice.

Click, click, click… 

Drawn from his musings by the resumed clicking noise, he scowled again.

"I said cut that out!"

Barely acknowledging him, she simply continued walking, tossing words back at him over her shoulder.

"You didn't answer me, dumbass. I figured you'd gone looking for your mind and gotten lost. So like I said before, stop _what_?"

"That damn clicking! You're doing it on purpose, so don't blame the stupid shoes."

Pausing, the dark-haired girl stopped in her tracks and looked down, eyes studying the shoes on her feed. Red, with an open toe and a short heel, having a single strap that went around each slender ankle. She'd bought them when she and Ichigo were walking home from school the other day, and this was the first chance she'd had to wear them. Rukia had never worn heels before, but the gaggle of girls at school seemed to think that they were something special. So, when she'd spied the shiny red shoes in the window, she'd decided to see if what they said was true. Special, well she wasn't so sure about that. But what the Kuchiki _did_ know was that she liked the way they looked, and she loved that nice clicking sound they made when she walked just so. That same clicking sound that her lanky, orange-haired companion apparently was tired of. With a shrug of her shoulders, she simply continued walking.

"No I'm not. That's just the sound they make. Besides, how can I do that on purpose? I don't think it's physically possible."

With a slight growl, he opened his mouth to say something, then stopped. Was it really even worth it to argue with her? Probably not, and the rational part of his mind chose that time to speak up and remind him that really, he had never actually _won_ an argument with her, and that such attempts at doing so were probably quite hazardous to his health.

Click, click, click… 

That damned clicking again. And just when he'd decided that it wasn't worth the hassle of trying to argue with her. Running a hand through his spiky hair, he glanced up to where she walked ahead of him and paused. He'd…never really taken the time to actually _look_ at the shoes. Well, he'd seen them when Rukia showed them to him and then drug him into that stupid store. But…they were just _shoes_, right? Not…that interesting…

"Besides, Ichigo. They look nice on me, don't you think?"

Well damned if THAT didn't make him take another look. Except…he wasn't looking at the shoes. At least, not _only_ at the shoes. Rather, he was watching the way that strap around her ankles seemed to make those same ankles suddenly look much more delicate and fragile. Or how her legs seemed longer. Or how the red shoes somehow seemed to fit perfectly with the light blue and white dress she wore. Or even how…just the way that she walked, and something about her was suddenly…different. Vaguely he recalled something Mizuiro had said once about women and high-heeled shoes. Something to do with posture and gait. Feeling his cheeks heat up slightly, he swallowed and glanced away. No, he _definitely_ wasn't watching the way Rukia walked, wondering why he'd never noticed the subtle sway of hips, or the slight curves of her figure as the skirt shifted in time with her steps. Tearing his eyes away as she turned back, he hoped very fervently that his face had resumed it's normal colouration.

"Dumbass, aren't you going to agree that they look nice on me?"

Covering the momentary embarrassment with a scowl, he rolled amber-brown eyes at her as he blatantly stared at the footwear in a seemingly bored manner before raising an eyebrow with a smug smirk.

"They're just shoes, baka."

She narrowed her eyes at him and for a moment it almost looked as though she'd clock him, but for whatever reason she decided otherwise. With a huff and a muttered curse that was no-doubt directed towards him, she turned and stalked off down the street as he followed, now with a new appreciation for Rukia's footwear and a smirk on his face. Ok, so maybe the clicking wasn't…_that_ bad.


End file.
